sandblasting before polishing?????????

[nick9882]

im new at this and i wanted to try to polish my exhaust pipe on my dirtbike,would i be able to sandblast it firt to get any rust off or is there another way off preping it.

[mpierich]

Originally Posted by nick9882

im new at this and i wanted to try to polish my exhaust pipe on my dirtbike,would i be able to sandblast it firt to get any rust off or is there another way off preping it.

Unless there's a lot of paint or other coating on them, I wouldn't bother. Just degrease them before you start. You'll probably need to start with at least 220 grit to get out the scratches, and that'll take care of anything that the blasting would. Is the pipe stainless?

[alabama_lowlife]

plus sandblasting leaves alot of little pits that you have to sand out as well. so if you're not sanding scratches and rust, you're sanding pits.

[nick9882]

i was wondering what grit paper i should start with and end with before using any of the compounds.

[sswee]

Usually 220 to 320 if the part is in decent shape. General rule of thumb is to increase grit no more than 100 grit per step. I usually go to black after 600 wet while others prefer to go to 1500 or 2000 grit. Most is going to be whatever works best for you. It's important to get the scratches all the way out from the previous step before moving to the next step.
SS